The Facility had undergone a few radical changes since the last time that Yusei had been incarcerated there. At the time that he had been facing off against a corrupt warden with little real skill, she had still been angry at the world. At her father, at her Psychic powers, at the Mark on her arm that bound them together. If Akiza had known about Yusei back when he had been locked in a cell, the Black Rose Witch may have attacked the building to try and destroy him. It was strange how much their situation had changed.
"Okay, this is the last opportunity." A pair of vast metal doors had been integrated into the structure during construction. It had allowed heavy machinery in and out to continue building and improving the inside as the cells were gradually filled with prisoners. Those smart enough to try and sue Goodwin for health issues caused by being close to the construction had not lasted long. They tended to discover that they had 'volunteered' for certain projects to earn early parole. Not many of them could be found after leaving their cells. "Are you sure that you want to do this?" Once Trudge had gained the clearance necessary to find out what had happened to those prisoners who incurred Goodwin's wrath, he had stayed far from the jail unless absolutely necessary. "There isn't any going back once you have."
"Do you think that he would do any less for us?" In order to avoid the teeming cameras that had sprung up at every location even vaguely related to Yusei, Akiza was dressed in a long overcoat with a hat, sunglasses and scarf covering most of her face. It could almost have been Musume sneaking in except that she had refused to partake in any capacity for the plan. "Let's just get this over with before anyone catches on."
"Suit yourself." Leading the way over to a much small gate system used for people to enter, Trudge swiped an ID card through the scanner before typing in a long code that went with it. "Don't forget, there're probably more cameras inside than there is out here. Be careful what you say." They had already gone over a few other points but Trudge was right to reinforce this one. If the hidden eyes of the world were listening in, anything she said could be twisted to suit a nefarious purpose. "Try not to dawdle if you don't have to." Entering into a heavily reinforced corridor, a shudder ran through his frame. "This place gives me the creeps." Crossing to the far side at a slightly faster pace than normal, he keyed another code into the waiting pad and waited for the door to open.
Waiting on the other side of the thick metal was a strict face that reminded Akiza of Heitmann from Duel Academy. Not in appearance but in that arrogant streak that they knew best and could only be persuaded otherwise if someone slapped them in the face with enough proof and authority.
"Warden Ishi." Trudge seemed unsettled by the appearance of the actual warden of the prison. "I didn't expect to see you today. Is there anything the matter?"
"Not at all." An imposing woman by practice, Warden Ishi was a formidable figure who clearly spent a lot of time polishing increasing an already perfect physique. "But when the Assistant Chief of Special Investigations shows up, I feel it helps to personally attend. Don't let it be said that the different branches of government never do anything to help each other." For just an instant, Trudge wished that he was back in the bad old days where corruption ran rampant and he could either bribe or intimidate the warden into leaving.
"I see that your visitor hasn't yet been briefed on proper procedure." If a person was able to adjust to the looming mountain of muscle that was Ishi, they could register the two burly guards in full riot gear behind her. "I'll have to ask you to remove the hat, glasses, scarf and jacket." Ishi said the word 'ask' – and every word that had preceded it – as if read from a manual. The tone was clear – she was the warden, this was her prison and anyone who didn't like it was free to either leave at once or stay for a lot longer. The first was an option only to those visiting, the second was allowed for both guests and residents.
"On second thoughts." Ishi was trying to outstare Akiza as she followed the order. In the last day, she had gone from not even knowing if Yusei was in the city to standing in the same building as him. Nobody could intimidate her right then. "You can keep the coat."
"Has he been informed yet?" Sensing the hostile atmosphere, Trudge tried to move the situation along. "And moved to appropriate facilities?" Both of the helmets moved to evaluate him as the stand-off continued.
"My people are just waiting for the order." Watching Ishi smile reminded Akiza of a medical textbook. A perfect display of powerful teeth. "To be honest," Twisting her head around to glance at one of the guards, a quiet nod came in reply. One hand reached up to whisper commands into a radio. "I wasn't even sure that you would show up."
"To be honest," Returning that smile with a dreadful cheer, Akiza had the feeling that she had just stepped from an aeroplane with the point of no return dwindling into the distance. "I wasn't sure if it would work."
A change of venue is always nice. With nobody knowing the full extent of his charges beyond 'crimes under international law', the penal system had incarcerated Yusei with the fullest extent of their powers. There had been no phone call, no lawyer and no visitors since Trudge had been forcibly removed from his escort. "Hey, genius." Rapping a baton onto the thickened steel door, one of the dozen guards posted outside his cell checked over the orders one last time. "Looks like you're going for a walk." Rattling chains sounded from within as the prisoner tried to lean forward inquisitively.
Knowing how intelligent her prisoner was, the prison warden had ordered Yusei to be restrained at all times. He was only let out for toilet breaks once every few hours and tied down while he rested in the evenings. Meals never required cutlery, the trays had to be pushed out of his reach before they were collected. "Up." Looking around at the uniformed figures filing into his cell, Yusei said nothing and did nothing except quietly rise to his feet. After Trudge had been sent to arrest him, he had known these were exceptional circumstances. Being taken from his cell in the middle of the night was about what he had expected.
When it came time for transport, Yusei calmly allowed himself to be restrained into a wheelchair and escorted down emptied corridors. Anybody who came within thirty metres of the prisoner was treated as suspicious and escorted away by two guards from the group. Anybody who came within twenty was treated as hostile and quickly taken down. It was a quick trip to the service elevator. One camera was dangling by a thread in the corner. "Yeah, maintenance has been meaning to get to that." One of the guards had noticed Yusei looking. "Low priority." Yusei still said nothing. Being taken in a service elevator meant that there was room enough for a fight if he got loose. With ten guards in riot gear, he would be beaten to a pulp before even getting out of the chair. An escape would have to wait.
The slow lift jerked to a halt. "All out." The heavy doors opened onto an identical corridor to the one that they had just left. Wide, brightly lit. The sort used only for the highest-profile prisoners. Once again, the guards formed a formation. Two guards ahead of the convoy, two at the back, two on either side of Yusei and the final two each taking a handle on his wheelchair. In the unlikely event that a squad of kind-hearted mercenaries happened to launch a rescue, the two pushing Yusei could let him go and be ready to respond in an instant. "This is your stop." Drawing to a halt outside one of the many identically innocuous doors in the hallway, he kept the surprise from showing on his face. Being taken away to an uncertain fate was not what he wanted yet Yusei couldn't help feeling that was not how things were meant to go.
"Do not take anything, do not give anything." One of the guards pushing the wheelchair undid Yusei's bonds while the other kept a tight watch on him. "A full search and inventory will be performed upon leaving. If you resist, we have authority to use force. Do you understand?" Of course he understood what he was being told. Otherwise, he had no idea what was going on. Levering to his feet, twitchy guards flinched towards the prisoner as he stumbled to press one hand against the wall. It had been some time since he had been able to do more than stretch his legs along the floor. Walking to a minute to adjust to.
A guard by the door opened it for him and quickly stepped as Yusei stumbled through on wobbly legs. Inside was not what he had expected. Turning to ask for answers, he watched the guards carefully split into two teams of five and walk to either end of the long corridor. Even if he took advantage of the sudden release from his previous occupancy, they would have plenty of time to see whatever plan he could come up with before it even got close. Worse, he could only target one team. The other would be able to raise the alarm before he could even get within sight of any exit.
Closing the door – and noting how there was a handle on the inside to let himself out – Yusei observed his surroundings again. There was a thick bed to replace the padded section of the floor he had been resting on, complete with an actual duvet and two pillows. A small room in the far corner was still closed. Limping slightly as underused muscles slowly woke back up, he fumbled for the handle and leaned heavily on it as the door swung open into another surprising area.
A small bathroom lay inside. Toilet not built directly into the wall but just embedded enough to make it clear that prying anything off to be used as a weapon would be too much effort for the average prisoner. Same with the sink except that it was wooden panelling underneath. Easier access for any maintenance work to be carried out. A few sturdy kicks could probably shatter of a piece large enough to be used as a weapon but then he would have to deal with the splinters. It was strange. They had taken incredible precautions to avoid any chance that he escape yet put him in a room that could provide adequate materials for an escape attempt. Peeking inside a leather bag beside the sink, he spied an electric razor, general toiletries and comb sitting in neat little pockets.
Observing the benign rooms, Yusei fiddled with the razor, flicking the button on and off again as he listened to the strong buzz. Not only had they included a working shaver but everything seemed to have been provided. It was like a modest hotel room had been built directly into the prison. He had heard about such rooms, used mainly for powerful people momentarily inconvenienced by the justice system. They were held in these places until bail was arranged and they could return to their lives of luxury. What he couldn't understand was why he was being transferred from the inescapable cell to this far nicer one.
Hearing the door quietly click open, he leant back to see into the first room. "Say anything and I'll kill you." Looking extremely uncomfortable, Akiza tried to preserve her modesty as the guard outside held out a patient hand to take her coat. Underneath it, she wore little more than the short skirt and sports top from years ago in the WRGP. Ducking back into the bathroom, the smartest man alive lost the ancient battle of intellect over instinct as a sturdy blush appeared across his cheeks.
"What are you doing here?" Closing his eyes tight, the brief image began to fester and grow inside his perverted mind. It had been a few years since she had last worn the outfit. Back then, it had been a daring costume and part of the thrilling excitement of the event. Now, it barely fit and clung to her like a second skin. The taut nature of her outfit was only accentuated by the inch-high high-heels that she had carefully balanced all the way to The Facility in.
"Shut up, shutup, shutupshutupshutup." At that exact moment, Akiza was extremely glad that he wasn't looking. The full-body blush she was undergoing made it difficult to distinguish where her clothes started or skin began.
"I've died." Trying to rationalise the situation, Yusei leapt for the only conclusion that made any sort of sense to him. "I've died and I'm being punished for all my sins." Exactly what sins that he was being punished for was uncertain. He had clearly passed away in the endless internment in his cell far below the ground.
"You're being punished?! I'm the one standing out here half-naked!" An exaggeration to be sure. Almost before he had dived back out of sight, Akiza had lunged for the thick blanket on the bed.
"Why are you almost naked?" In an effort to stem the growing tide of images in his mind, he was trying to catalogue the items in the bathroom by average molecular density. It was not going well with the fear that Akiza was drawing any imaginative inferences on the fourth word.
"Because it was the only way to get to see you!" Sturdy hands grabbed his shoulders and Yusei instinctively opened his eyes. Even though the blanket was short, it concealed more than a daring summer dress and he found himself about to look her square in the eye. Not that part of his brain wasn't trying to look her in the other set of eyes. As it were.
"And I'm glad to see you too." Wrapping both arms tight around her, Yusei made sure that his head rested atop her own. There was strong will, there was removing temptation and there was the wisdom to know which to choose. For a long minute, they just held each other and swayed slightly as his legs struggled to stay upright.
"That tickles." Squirming like an overstuffed burrito, Akiza peered up at him with scarcely veiled irritation. "Why do you have a beard?" Stroking the short whiskers, Yusei adopted an air of arrogance and wisdom.
"I think it reflects the true depth of my intellect." Another glare from his friend detailed that it did not reflect his intellect unless his intellect was significantly smaller than he made it out to be. "Okay, I've been kept in a cell the whole time. No weapons or opportunity to shave. It's escape-proof, designed by a team of the smartest people the government couldn't find." One of those self-criticising looks she hated crossed his face.
"Was this team lead by an idiot with spiky hair?" Seeing the tremble in his legs, she aimed him toward the comfy bed and gently slid down beside him.
"It might have been." Smiling slightly, Yusei covered his tired eyes. The light in his other cell came from a bioluminescent surface and never stopped. It had been designed for the worst of the worst. Killers, war-mongers and scientists gone mad (which happened unusually often). If they had tenacity enough to be a concern, they were placed in the cell without any furnishing beyond the embedded loops for chains right beside the padded section of the floor that functioned as a bed. It was technically a war crime to leave a person in there for more than three days but Yusei had waived that right in order to create the basis of a 'compliant prisoner' defence. It also meant constant pain to his eyes, an inability to think coherently for long periods of time and the strange taste of yellow if he stood up too quickly. "How are you holding up? Sleepless nights fretting over me, tearfully looking at old pictures with Hoshi curling up on your chest for company?"
A stabbing pain in his foot reminded him that Akiza was still wearing pointed heels. "We're making some headway. Every watchlist in the world has you right at the top, experts in all fields are flying into New Domino. Trudge is pulling every string he can reach and Mina is actually getting something done." Men tended to think in straight lines. Women knew how to get around the rules without breaking them.
"Any clue yet on what they think I did? Tell me it wasn't those parking tickets I was contesting." Holding his hands, she noticed the minute trembles coming from within. Despite the brave face, she knew Yusei was scared deep down. Even if Yliaster had started it all, the full might of the legal system was on their side now. All the cards were stacked against Yusei and he had no idea what game was even being played.
"Something to do with the SRC. Every time we make any headway, a new phone rings and demands that we going through the proper de-classification paperwork. It's not much, but it's a start." It wasn't much at all. Thousands of projects went through the facility each year and the director had unrestricted access to all of them. "Trudge is trying to get you moved into police custody. Because you weren't formally processed, he might be able to place you in holding for a couple of days." Lawyers from all corners of the government had crowded to weigh in on that one. Last she had checked, each side was rotating out new faces every few hours to constantly keep a finger on the slow pulse. "Luna's contacted a bunch of lawyers from around the world. They've been really helpful." Many of them had offered to fly out before being fully clued in on the situation. After that, Luna had kindly let them off the hook.
"Is there anything we can do for you?" At some point in the update, Yusei had closed his eyes to better absorb the information but seemed to be on the verge of falling asleep. The last time that he had been with her, it had been a sound night. They couldn't take the risk that it wouldn't be a repeated miracle.
"Hmm?" Struggling to keep his eyes open, he offered a tired smile. "No, you've done plenty. I think I'll just have a shave and go back to my cell." It seemed perfectly normal to him, as if being in prison was the same as some obscure business conference he was being forced to attend.
"Let me." There wasn't much argument to be had. Several days tied upright had left his leg muscles extremely weak and the thought of standing before a mirror for minutes at a time was daunting. Nipping to the small bathroom, Akiza grabbed the tiny electric razor before shuffling closer to him on the mattress. Turning his head with careful fingers, she engaged the clippers against his face and began moving them in gentle strokes.
"How did you even arrange all this?" Taking care not to move his facial muscles, he carefully studied her eyes. It might very well be the last time he saw such compassion and he didn't want to waste a single moment of it. "The rooms and the meeting?"
Not completely gone, the blush returned in full force and Yusei raised an enquiring eyebrow. "Somebody started messaging me yesterday. We don't know who. Hush," Seeing the warning about to come, she headed it off quickly. "They did us a favour. Like it or not, they're the only reason I was allowed in here." Reserving judgement for later, Yusei quietly sat and pointedly waited for the rest of the story to unfold. "Well, they managed to give us a strong enough case to convince the warden to let me in." Not 'one of us' or a lawyer but 'me'. Already displeased with a new person becoming involved, Yusei began to grow outright suspicious.
"Oh?" It was enough to make her blush anew as the hairs on the corner of his jawbone were carefully lopped off. Like a woman shaving her ankles, most men often struggled with the sharp corner.
"I don't know how they even thought of it." She was wittering now, trying to avoid the awkward truth of the situation. "And it apparently relates to the IA2 form that the SRC has to let us live together." Eyes widened as the pieces connected inside his mind. Akiza continued to skip around the exact words as she carefully sliced off the crude beginnings of a moustache.
"Akiza," Swallowing hard, he tried to ignore the blood pounding inside his ears. "This isn't a..." It was a tough word, an impossible idea. It was also a cross-breed of two extremely basic rights with one being the right to cohabitation and the other... "Please tell me that this isn't a conjugal visit?"
"Yusei," Enough burning was happening in both ears that Akiza was worried she might actually have an aneurysm if Yusei continued to focus on the point. "Don't forget who's holding the razor." Scraping down his neck with surgical precision brought the clippers right over his pounding jugular. "Choose your next words carefully." A single slip could easily carve a bald line across his skull. Wouldn't that be dreadful?
"I think you missed a spot." Their averted eyes met briefly in the middle of the bad joke and it was impossible not to laugh.
"Here," Shifting from one side to the other, she began careful work on his right cheek. "Almost finished." That gentle buzz smoothed down the fine lines on his cheek before clipping them off. "Do you have any idea why you've been arrested?"
"Trudge said that it was under confidential international law. I know a few." Of course he did. Yusei never went into a situation without an idea of what was happening. There were any number of projects that had required he read exhaustive lengths of material. As a responsible scientist, he always made sure to take in as much information as possible. "I've been thinking about every project that's gone through the SRC. None of them should have raised this sort of reaction. Has anyone else been arrested?" If any other members of staff had been disappeared, it would help give him a clue as to how he would be charged.
"Everyone else is accounted for. We're all working on getting you out of here." Moving the clippers down his cheek, Akiza was surprised when Yusei caught her hand in a gentle grip. It was intense but restrained.
"There are a few people I need you to contact. You can find them at the SRC. And, you guessed it, they are all lawyers." Something about the way Yusei was speaking seemed more careful than risking a slip to any listeners. Racking her brains as best she could, Akiza tried to figure out what game he was playing. "While I'm in here, there are some protocols they will need to invoke." That last word stuck out as particularly strange. A timid thought raised a hand from the back of her mind and voiced a suggestion. "But make sure they don't try and use every little clause. Oh, and I'm told I can't directly confer with all the lawyers, just one. Final word." Winking to indicate that he had given her all the clues he had, Yusei let a dribble of that stern control slip from his form. It had been far too long since he had found the opportunity to relax. It was too dangerous to spread word of his condition in the confines of the prison and meditation could only take the edge off. He could hardly request access to an undefined piece of technology without raising more alarms.
"Is there anything else that I can do?" Pulling his head down against her shoulder, she felt him take a deep breath in. It wasn't difficult to think that he was fighting back tears.
"Ask Pessimal to keep following his investigation. Make sure Din doesn't flip out. Feed Hoshi if she stops by." Strangely, the cat hadn't set foot at Poppo Time since he had been arrested. Even without being inside, she seemed to know that he wasn't there and follow. "My Deck is in the safe in my office at the SRC. Take care of it. For me." That tiny pause between the 'safe' and the 'for' gave him away. Yusei was aware that there was a chance he wouldn't be getting out of this one and wanted her to have it if events failed to improve.
"Only if you promise to talk to your brothers once this is all over." Holding his hand in one of her own, she tried to keep the tone light. "They're not exactly being careful." Crow was risking the police opening his old Sector Security file for a closer look if he didn't stop going to so many shady places. "Or professional." As for Jack's approach of shouting at anyone he could, he had revealed some exploitable avenues yet also closed up a few in the process. "And don't forget about the twins. Leo and Luna have been doing some good work." Even if it had amounted to little. The sheer effort the pair had put in was rivalling the more mature members of their family.
"Are you sure?" Smiling at her, he could feel just how much more hope filled the room simply by Akiza being there. "Who knows what I might confess to? Maybe I give up on contesting those parking tickets." Bravely taking the thrown blanket directly to his face, Yusei was enjoying being able to smile for the first time in days.
"Hey, Yusei." Posing provocatively in the doorway, Akiza threw him a salacious wink. "It was nice seeing your eyes pop out like that." Then she did up the coat as one of the guards escorted her away.
Once the group had quietly moved Yusei back to his original cell, he was reattached to the wall and quietly evaluated by the guard. "Have a nice time?" It was obviously a man under the helmet. No lady would ever have been so crass.
"It was nice to have a proper conversation again." Looking up at the slot in the door, Yusei reached up to rub a hand along his jaw. "And a shave." Running his thumb over the curve of his jawbone, it brushed against a small patch of skin nestled in the very tight corner on his neck. A few bristles still lingered to prick the pad as it passed over. In an otherwise unmarked area, it was just enough of a reminder as to where gentle lips had pressed against the skin.
Outside The Facility, a crowd of reporters was already starting to form. Someone inside the prison must have seen Trudge or Akiza and put two and two together. Luckily, Trudge knew the sort of duplicity that would occur and had a patrol car waiting. "Where to?" Sliding into the passenger seat, Akiza took the left seat as Trudge had the police officers start driving without waiting for detailed instructions. "Back to Poppo Time?"
"No." Using her sleeve to wipe away the makeup, Akiza checked her reflection in the phone she had asked Trudge to hold onto. "Take me to the SRC. I think that I have a plan." More accurately, Yusei had just given her the first step in what was hopefully the right direction.
Legal departments tend to demand huge offices, expensive salaries and assistants for assistants for the assistants. Yusei had given everyone a small stipend to buy as large a desk as they wanted for the shared room, salaries in line with how much work they put in and how long they had been practising law, refused more than one assistant unless working with other members of the legal department and promised them cases both easy and fiendishly difficult.
As with most of the SRC, people hated his ideas until they actually tried them. Nobody had left under bad circumstances. In fact, the legal department had the lowest turnover rate of the entire
"Who has the files on last year's tech conference in Sweden?" There were probably some legal proceedings ongoing with the SRC. Patent claims, parking tickets, territorial disputes with the city. Judging by the unified motions going on around the room, nobody was working on them.
"Yamada had the international reports last." Given ten minutes and the right forms, all other cases had been put in legal limbo. Everyone was focused on the real issues. "Does anyone know what happened to the WHO files?" Even peripheral work with the World Health Organisation would require the strictest background checks. Finding those reports would go a long way to building up Yusei's reputation.
Edging her way through the chaos took longer than Akiza thought possible. Every other body that she bumped into either piled files into her arms or dragged them out of the stack. At one point, she found herself suddenly balancing a tray of dirty coffee mugs before they were whisked away into the mess. Eventually, she arrived at the one office on the floor which didn't have paperwork piled to the ceiling.
Kamikawa was a relative rarity amongst the SRC upper management. Old, latecomer to the SRC, male. Most department heads had joined in the first eighteen months and were late-middle-aged at most. To quote one unfortunate junior lawyer 'Only dirt is older than Kamikawa'. It had been unfortunate because Kamikawa had been practising law longer than than the much younger man had been alive. By the end of the shift, he was looking for a new job.
Rules were clear – professionalism was foremost when working under the foremost legal authority in New Domino City.
"Mr Kamikawa?" The aged figure was in an intense discussion with several of his colleagues. A conversation that ceased as soon as she interrupted. All the faces recognised her as soon as they saw her face. Yusei was their client, they had examined every detail of his life. Professional faces instantly went up. Akiza didn't take it personally and ploughed on ahead. "I managed to speak with Yusei earlier today." Those words changed Kamikawa's face from professional distance to political. Only a slight inclination of his head was needed in order for the room to instantly empty except for the two of them. Carefully closing the door, he walked back around his desk and indicated that she take a seat as well.
"And this was under what circumstances?" A certain level of detachment was needed to work for the boss, a lot more was needed to avoid jail. If he heard something that would incriminate the case, it would technically not be heard.
"I'd rather not say. But completely legal!" Colour rose in her cheeks at the memories. One politely disinterested face pretended not to notice any discomfort. "He's holding up for now but doesn't know anything we don't." The first half was superfluous information which he instantly discarded. The second was carefully filed away into that internal case file Kamikawa kept inside his head.
"Hmm. That is unfortunate." Unlike many lawyers around the world, this one was not instantly convinced of his boss' guilt. Few people could earn trust and respect like Yusei could. Kamikawa had simply been hoping that he might have been able to provide some sort of insight into why he had been arrested.
"There was something that he said which I think you might be able to help with." At least, that was what she was assuming. Abi had been unable to draw on any useful information while she was on the way over. "Yusei said 'Invoke clause one. Final word.' Does that mean anything to you?" Although using the phrase 'final word' may have just been a clue to uncovering the real meaning of his message, Akiza knew that he knew she would have been smart enough to figure it out without the hint. At least, she would be telling him that was exactly what he had been thinking.
"Too vague to be of much use." Mulling over the words, it was impossible to pick out one particular meaning from the millions of potential ones. Clauses filled every single legal document. Each section of each document could contain clauses. Each paragraph of each section could include clauses. "Although, there is one trick that Yusei taught me which might be of use." A perfectly bland look appeared on his lined face. Legally blank. "Are you willing to testify that those are the instructions he gave you?"
"I am." Why she would have to testify to something her boss had ordered was unclear. She also didn't like the slight glint forming in one eye either. "What trick are you talking about?" There was a long list of psychological tricks that she knew Yusei employed. Akiza had taught him a few of them when learning them during her degrees.
"Come with me." Softly padding over to the door, he stepped through with Akiza standing just inside.
Getting a room to quiet down is no easy feat. People are unlikely to follow orders when shouted. The louder they are shouted, the more likely they are to resist. Kamikawa didn't shout. He just glared at one person until they stopped speaking. Then he did it to three more people. Once the crowd figured out what was happening, they quickly fell in line.
"New orders. Dr Fudo wants us to use a clause. We don't know which clause or which document. Just 'clause one'. That's all we've got." Unlike when Kamikawa had asked Akiza, nobody checked for verification. The grand-fatherly figure was known for never being wrong. "Find every document that you can. SRC, legal, contract, the damn vet if that's what it takes." If Hoshi ended up somehow saving the day, Akiza would start checking with Crow for medicine and Jack for science. Also the sky for flying pigs. "Go on. What are you waiting for?" Files were dropped, phone calls cancelled. They had a single goal now.
"Good trick." She could identify the subtle undertones of comradeship, organisation, efficiency and total obedience that Yusei used with his brothers. "I didn't know that you'd met Yusei's brothers."
"Oh, I haven't had the pl... experience." Meeting Jack or Crow could very easily be classified as a pleasure, with Crow's honest praise and Jack's highly polished skills. Meeting both at once was never going to end well, especially if they were arguing. "Dr Fudo answered a phone call to them once. Hearing him convince them was simply masterful." Exactly why both Jack and Crow had been on a shared phone call to Yusei was a secret that the lawyer would never disclose. He was a man of his word and had promised Yusei that he would never reveal the exact situation.
"Is there anything that I can do to help?" Quietly gesturing that Akiza rejoin him in the privacy of his office, Kamikawa shut the door again to close out the sounds of frantic research. Even with such a vague direction, the group was able to make extreme progress now that they had a specific clause to root out.
Carefully looking over the young doctor, Kamikawa laid the mask of political indifference aside as he noted the bags of exhaustion hanging beneath each eye, the hints of fatigue present in her face and the way that no amount of makeup could distract from the growing bloodshot whites of her eyes. "Go home." He said the words in the most gentle tones he was allowed to use in his professional capacity. "Get some rest. I've been staggering my teams since this began. Even if you sleep for the next three days, there will always be people working on the case."
"You promise to let me know as soon as you have a lead we can use?" Picking up that same mask from earlier, Kamikawa once again became cold and indifferent. Yet if Akiza looked carefully at those wise and learned eyes, she could still make out the faint twinkle of genuine compassion. Everyone at the SRC was part of Yusei's family.
"As soon as we have a viable plan, we will, of course, be moving forward. Various members of staff will be informed in due course." Heads of departments, members of security, a few people who might be needed to be called upon as expert witnesses. Akiza was almost certainly in the list somewhere, just not very high. "As I said, go home and get some rest. There will be an update by the time you wake up."
In the wild chaos that existed on the other side of the door, it was impossible to tell who was in charge of anything at that time. Everyone was shouting orders, assistants were being run ragged and members of staff who had never met found themselves suddenly sharing desks that had previously been separated by sets of locked drawers and strict shifts. With everything that was going on, it was easy to miss the one person who was neither a lawyer nor been in that room even an hour as they silently turned and walked away from the mess. There was no reason to stick around now that Akiza had given the department a goal. Events were clearly proceeding well enough without the need for additional help. Besides, there was other work to be done.
Once she had given the SRC legal department their marching orders, Akiza had taken Kamikawa's advice and returned home to Poppo Time. It had been almost difficult to get back inside as it had to leave. With no comment about where she had been going, the reporters had been less pressing to try and get a response on where she had been after coming back. The welcoming committee was sadly thin on the ground when she arrived.
"Any luck?" Shivers had given ways to severe trembling but at least Musume had managed to get rid of the stutter. Since the puking incident when Akiza had uttered the words 'conjugal visit', she had also managed to avoid any sort of ethereal outburst.
"How are you feeling?" Avoiding the dangerous questions, she focused on the care of her most unusual patient yet.
"How much longer until I can have more medicine?" Until they could figure out what she was suffering from, Akiza was treating Musume with the sort of medicine that could be bought in any pharmacy.
"Another two hours." They were currently undergoing a round of paracetamol to treat the return of her fever. Musume's symptoms were all over the place. At least the drugs seemed to be keeping her fever in check this time. "Any pains, nausea?" Crow had been careful enough to plan ahead and Musume had vomited into a bucket.
"Pounding headache. Eyes hurt." A more colourful description would have been delivered if anyone else had asked. As both a respectable doctor and her mother, Akiza received a more polite overview of Musume's symptoms. "Been drinking more water than a bathtub and pissing it straight out the other end every couple of hours."
"I want you to try and drink a little less for now." Grabbing a thermometer from the side, she stuck it in an unresisting – yet still surly – mouth to gauge Musume's temperature. "Processing that much liquid so fast could be detrimental to your recovery." Grinding her teeth slightly, the thermometer rattled past Musume's pointed gaze. "Just be grateful that it's one for your mouth." Eyes widened slightly just before the calm beeping announced that a result was ready to be delivered. "Hmm. You're doing a lot better. Where are Jack and Crow?"
"They went out. Crow's hitting up a couple of guys over on Satellite and Jack went to ask Carly if she's heard anything." The two redheads exchanged a glance. If any of them found out that Jack had been off enjoying himself while Yusei was locked up, it wouldn't end well for him. "Luna called. One of her lawyers said that establishing a profile could help. She and Leo are tracking down anyone that Yusei helped." Despite her personal vendetta against the scientist, Musume had to admit that the loyalty Yusei held was... inspiring. "What about you?"
"I got some legal advice of my own. Shower, bed, sleep." Tugging loose the belt on her coat, Akiza carefully stepped into the bathroom. Peeling the outfit off, she stepped into the shower and let the tension of the day wash from her shoulders. Walking to The Facility had been a nerve-wracking exercise with only the sturdy figure of Trudge there to keep her calm. Actually talking to Yusei had almost brought tears to her eyes when Akiza realised how scared he was. Now that they at least had the beginning for a plan to help Yusei, it was acceptable enough for her to unwind that tense control she had used to keep everything in.
It took thirty minutes before she felt emotionally stable enough to step back out and wrap a thick towel around herself. Gathering up her outfit in one hand, she tucked it under one arm as she stepped out into the corridor. Musume was still on the couch, leaning back in a futile attempt to keep her sinuses from clogging. With both eyes closed to filter out the intense pain, Akiza could look at that carefully calm face and see the similarities to her own. Refined cheekbones from her mother, the shape of her father's eyes. There was some of Musume's father in there, in that alertness which kept her aware of dangerous surroundings. It was just sad that the entire past was turning out to dangerous territory for her.
Four rooms existed at Poppo Time – one bathroom, three bedrooms. After eight years in a coma, Musume had no qualms about sleeping on the couch. It was also easier to reach the toilet when she could run in a straight line. Crow had come back expecting to use his own room so Akiza had simply cleared out two drawers for him to use and been thankful her sheets had been in the laundry when Yusei had been snatched up from the SRC. As for her own sleeping arrangements, she was currently staying in the only unoccupied room.
Slipping the towel over the corner of the cabinet to dry, Akiza crawled into the gentle sheets of the bed. If she breathed in deep enough, it was just about possible to smell the lingering scent of Yusei as she drifted off into sleep.
Only forty hours after her visit to Yusei, Kamikawa was handed a single-page folder without looking at the deliverer. Forty-one hours after Yusei had been visited, an unusual injunction was filed. The SRC congratulated themselves and words soon spread that hope was afoot. Kamikawa personally called Akiza to deliver the good news himself. The celebrations lasted for about two hours.
Then word came back that a trial was being convened for the following Monday. In the world of legal timelines, that was practically five minutes warning. Nothing had ever gone through so fast before. Even though they had just landed a major blow, Kamikawa and his staff knew they had only just begun what could be a long and brutal battle to rescue their friend.
And I bet you were expecting a smutty lemon chapter. Shame, shame I say! And extra shame for those who read without leaving a review!